Can genocides be stoped by economics?
 

A friend and I were discussing the genocides in Africa and we feel that perhaps if governments made it unprofitable for the people in Africa and or the copanies supplying the arms and equpment that make the genocides possible. That the genocides could be stoped.

The question, on a philosophical level, is that even using economics in a way to help others could those genocides be stoped, for they are based on hatrid rather than economics, if countries or powerful orgiznations (such as the U.N) made it unprofitable for either the companies supplying the equepment or the countries can these genocides be stoped?

Here's an alternative, if everyone was content with their lot, they wouldn't have the inclination to blame their troubles on people of a different origin.

In this respect, I would expect that by investing strongly in an area, building infrastructure, creating jobs and opportunities, you would be reducing the chances of racial/tribal violence erupting, because people would be too busy, and too happy to engage in such nonsense.

Using economics to repress behaviour is much more difficult, you don't need a lot of money to commit genocide - those in Rwanda managed it with machetes, clubs and fire - most of which is pretty much cheap as free.

Genocide may be based on hatred, but you need a reason to hate in the first place. So, if your belly is full, you're surrounded by people you love and are secure in your home, you are much less likely to hate than if you have no money, your children are starving, and your just wife left you for your xyzedian boss up the road with the good job and the fancy car.

one of the first issues would be to address diamond traffiking...i think that drying up the funding for international arms dealing could be a major component, if not a total solution, to reducing the occurance of genocidal conflicts.

Getting rid of the suppliers of weapons would not help that much. I have read that lots of the deaths in Africa are caused by Machetes.. before you go off saying anything about getting rid of them , my point is that people will use sticks, knives, rocks, or whatever they can to kill, if that's what they are motivated by.

You are different than me, you belive in a diferentgod/ live in the wrong place/ have the wrong color eyes/skin/shirt/tattoo .... I'm going to kill you.

That is the thinking that must be changed.

And it won't be easy.

As martinguerre said, the diamond traffiking could quite possibly be the most influential factor in the genocide. But, at the same time, when you look at other acts of mass hatred and/or genocide that have occured throughout the world, the economic reasons are just a small part of it. It takes a true and deep hatred to mass murder other human beings, and it is very hard to think that fixing the economic problems would fix the problem of hate. However, it might be a good start!

There certainly seems to be a correllation between national poverty and genocide, as is shown by examples like Rwanda, Sudan, Nazi Germany, etc. Germany is an interesting example, however, in that the genocide continued after Germany made an economic recovery. Wartime "patriotism" probably accounts for this as much as anything, but the fact remains that even the worst genocidal campaigns can continue under healthy economies. Thus, I feel that economics cannot be used to stop genocides, particularly those that have already begun. I agree that some genocides are directly the result of economic insecurity and poverty, but there are many ways to inspire a group of people to anihilate a different group. Racism, it seems at times, comes easy to humans.

as said before...

in africa they kill eachother with machetes when they can't get ahold of a gun. facilitating genocide (arms dealers) is a very serious thing, but you can not lift the responsibility from the people who deliver the killing blows themselves.

Genocides may be influenced by hatred, but hatred and violence are always influenced by hunger. The only way to stop widespread violence is to guarantee proper living conditions to these people. Whether that is possible is a completely different issues (I think it's not). Weapon smuggling and diamond trafficking are a byproduct of the current economical situation and thus they're not really issues that can influence anything. I don’t want to sound banal, but the idea is that you need to cure the sickness first, then the symptoms.